Tris' POV
After we eat breakfast Tobias and I start our hike to where we will have our date. I learned that Tobias went to ask my dad's permission to take me on a date to begin with, even though he already asked me. But since dad is responsible for everyone here he needed to know. Plus, I think Tobias wanted to make a good impression. Thankfully, dad didn't tell Matt or Scott or anyone for that matter about our date. No one knows we are going on one. But by the time we'll come back they probably will have figured that out.
We walk for almost an hour talking about a lot of things, from random things we saw on TV to what we wish to accomplish in our future. When we finally reach our destination my breath is taken away. There is a beautiful waterfall and a small pond in the middle of a meadow. I go to take a closer look at the waterfall and check the water. So, that's why he said I should take my bathing suit with me.
"Do you like it?" he asks smiling.
"I love it. Thank you for bringing me here. It's beautiful" I tell him honestly.
He sets up the blanket in front of the pond and sits down, patting the place next to him. I laugh and sit down.
"So, what are we going to do today?" I ask him.
"I thought maybe we could get to know each other better" he says smiling.
"Like trivial things or really personal?" I ask.
"Both. You start" he says.
"My favorite season is winter, well actually it's the Christmas season and I have a piercing in a very intimate place" I say with a straight face. I watch him swallow, his Adam's apple bobbing.
"Piercing?" he asks looking down on me.
"Yeah, and Christmas is just the best" I say. Of course, he stayed focused on the piercing.
"Really?" he asks.
"Yeah. And not just because of the gifts, but the decorations and the cookies. It's just wonderful. And I'm totally messing with you" I say laughing.
"Huh?" he asks taking a moment to register what I said. But then he smiles. "So, you don't like Christmas?" he asks catching on. We both laugh out loud.
"No, I do love Christmas. But no piercing, sorry."
"It's okay" he says.
"Your turn."
"I like spring."
"Why?"
"I guess because it means renewal. No matter what happened the year before in spring you can start over again."
"I never thought of it that way. I like it."
"Enough to change your favorite season?" he asks with a smug grin on his face.
"I wouldn't go that far. You wanna talk about more serious stuff or just telling stories from when we were younger?" I ask him. He sighs.
"Let's work toward the serious stuff" he suggests.
"That's fine by me. What do you like to do in your spare time?" I ask him.
"There are several things. Obviously hanging out with Zeke and the rest of my friends, but mainly him. We've known each other since we were five and have been best friends ever since. I like running, boxing. Soccer, obviously. But I also like to read and I'm good with computers. And when I turned sixteen I got my own truck. Mom and dad gave me half the money to buy it" he says excited.
"That's great. So, even though your folks are divorced they keep in touch" I say and his smiles instantly fades.
"No. My dad, Marcus, he isn't part of my life anymore" he starts saying.
"Tobias, you don't have to tell me anything you don't want to" I assure him. Sure I'm curious, but if it makes him uncomfortable I won't pry.
"It's okay. The story is long and I'll tell it another time. By dad I mean my mom's second husband, Clark. My parents divorced when I was eleven and after my mom married when I was twelve I suddenly had a new father. Clark is a really nice guy, even though in the beginning I was kind of a jerk to him. He is very patient and caring and he has been a dad through good and bad. And even after Rose was born he didn't treat me differently, in fact he loved me more. When I turned fourteen he became my legal guardian, along with my mom of course, and even though I still have my father's last name I feel that Clark is my dad."
"That's nice" I say not really knowing what else to say. I decide to tell him something more personal about myself. "My dad took me hiking the first time when I was three years old. I loved it so much that I asked for more. So, that summer we went outdoors every weekend. And when my dad couldn't go with me either my Uncle Joe took me or my Uncle Cameron. In time I moved from just hiking to actually climbing. I shortly became part of the Chicago area mountaineers and went on all kinds of expeditions. Sometimes my dad could make it other times one of my uncles came with me, but as time passed and we got to know each other better dad trusted me to go with these other people. They were all like my extended secret family – I have a lot more uncles and cousins than you know" I say with a chuckle thinking of them and he smiles. "We went on all kinds of expeditions in the country and outside. I made these great friends and we have this crazy, unique relationship. What you saw between me and Scott and Matt that's how we all are. We are crazy, but we love each other and we would do anything for the other."
"Can I ask you something?" he asks a little serious.
"Sure, anything" I say.
"After we met and I found out that you are a mountain climber I went online to research that. I read a lot of stuff and went on several forums. There was something I didn't understand" he says furrowing his eyebrows.
"What?" I ask curious.
"Is it true that, when someone can't go on anymore you just leave him there on the mountain?" he asks and I flinch. I think a moment about what to say, but there isn't much to say except "Yes". "Why?" he asks.
"Tobias, you have to understand a thing: on the mountain we are all the same. No one is better than the other. What you ask usually happens on the very big ones. Experienced mountaineers train themselves for years to survive in an environment like that. Imagine the following situation and I need you to be objective" I say and he nods. "You and your friends climb a mountain. The way up is tough but you are highly motivated to reach the summit. When you do you are happy, but also exhausted. Now, the tricky part is to come back down. By the time you start your descend you are past tired and sleepy. Your whole body aches and orders you to rest. The problem here is: you can't. If you stop before you reach the designated camp, which obviously is your resting place, you might not make it. The moment night falls in the mountains temperatures drop phenomenally. If you don't reach shelter you might die from hypothermia. Every mountaineer knows this and is aware of the risks when he or she starts ascending."
"I understand that, Tris. But why leave someone behind? How can you?" he asks. I sigh.
"It's the hardest thing anyone will ever do. You might as well kill that person yourself. It would actually be more merciful if you would shoot that person in the head. Imagine you are tired and night is falling. The only thing that can save you from certain death is you getting yourself back to camp. It's an improvised camp, but it has tents that can withstand the low temperatures and keep you alive till morning when you can continue your descend. Imagine on your way to that camp another climber stops because he is exhausted. Obviously, you try to motivate him to keep going, but if someone can't or has given up you can't stay there. You will die with that person. There's no way you can carry him or her, because of both the terrain and your own fatigue. If you stay you die. That's how simple it is. It's cruel, but it's the truth. If you want to survive the most you can do with anyone like that is try and make that person walk. You can even offer some help, but not carrying. It won't help any of you."
He is quiet for a moment, probably thinking of what I've told him. He looks at me serious with furrowed eyebrows opening his mouth and then closing it, obviously trying to form another question or plain sentence.
"Did you? Did you ever do that?" he asks a little wary.
"Yes" I say.
"Wow, I would have expected a lie here" he says surprised.
"Would you have preferred a lie?" I ask. He thinks for a moment.
"No. It's just…"
"Awkward" I say and he nods. "It happened a few times. I did my best to motivate them, but they were exhausted. If I would have stayed with them I would be long dead by now, Tobias. I feel bad for them, I swear I do, but I don't feel guilty. I know this sounds bad, but we all know the risks when we go to a mountain. If I would be in this position, the one to be left behind I would understand. That's why it's best to go with people you know, even care about, but not love, on expeditions that might go wrong. But it's difficult, because the more time you spend with these people the more you care. Five years ago, when I met Scott, I would have left him. Four years ago I would have spared five minutes to motivate him and then left. Three years ago it would have been ten to fifteen minutes. Two years ago half an hour. Last year probably an hour, which would have definitely cost me a toe or a finger. This year it would have cost me my hand or foot. You see, the more time you spend with people the harder it gets. This is why I didn't tell anyone from my family where I was going when I went to Nepal. If they would have known both my uncles would have come and Matt and worst of all, dad. They think I just did it for the thrill and to complete my Seven, yeah I climbed the mountain because of that. But I didn't tell them just to prove myself, because that's what they think, I overheard them talk. I didn't say anything to avoid any of them joining. Tobias, six people died this year on that mountain" I say and feel tears filling my eyes as I speak. He moves forward and hugs me tightly. I cry uncontrollably soaking his shirt. He rubs my back and whispers into my ear "Everything's alright now. You are safe."
After the tears subside he hands me a paper handkerchief and I wipe my tears and blow my nose. He looks at me with a sad expression on his face and I feel bad. I should have controlled my emotions better.
"I'm sorry" I say.
"Don't be. You needed that, otherwise you wouldn't have cried."
"Yeah, I guess."
"You must really love that life" he says after a while.
"I do. It's hard to describe. I was asked many times why I'm doing it."
"Why are you doing it?" he asks and I smile. He smiles back and I feel warmth spread inside of me. I search for my phone in my backpack and look for the pictures I have there. When I find them I hand him the phone telling him to scroll through them. It takes him a while to go through all, asking me where this or that was taken. I tell him everything about it and he smiles or frowns or laughs, depending on the story. I find him cute when he looks all concentrated on the screen, like he is studying something important. "Wow, these pictures are amazing" he says.
"Yeah. The view is indeed spectacular."
"But they are not all taken from the ground" he says with a frown.
"No. In some locations I went sky diving and took pictures that way. You should come sometime. It's really fun" I say excited, but his expression is even more serious now. "What?" I ask apprehensive. Oops, I just assumed we would go on from here, like on another date. Maybe he doesn't want to.
"Uhm, I'm not doing so well with heights" he confesses and catches me off guard.
"Huh?" I ask.
"I'm afraid of heights" he says a little shy.
"Oh" is all I say.
"Wanna… I don't know… go for a swim?" he asks.
"Sure." I get rid of my shirt and pants as well as my trekking shoes and literally jump onto the pond. He follows closely and for a long while we just chase each other in the water or splash water into the other's face and laugh hysterically. After a while I take a deep breath and dive. The water isn't deep here but I love to do it anyway. He follows quickly watching me curiously. I smile and he smiles back, but opens his mouth by accident and resurfaces. I think for a moment about what happened so far. I never went on a date before. This is quite nice. Tobias dives again and motions me to come up. I do so and when we are above the water he smiles.
"It amazes me how you can hold your breath" he says.
"It's no big deal, just exercise. You could do it too" I say.
"You should teach me sometime" he says.
"We can try now" I say and he frowns. "What?"
"I was hoping that could be our third or fourth date" he says serious. Wait. Did he say third or fourth date? Does this mean he wants to go out again?
"Thinking ahead, I see."
"Well, I need to plan ahead. I need to keep this interesting long enough for you to like me" he says and grins.
"Who says I don't like you already?" I ask.
"You do?" he asks and his grin widens.
"Well, yeah. There any reason I shouldn't?"
"None that I can think of" he says with a laugh.
"Okay. So what now?" I ask him.
"Lunch." We unpack the turkey sandwiches Hana, Zeke's and Uriah's mother packed for us. We both went into the kitchen before we left and she handed us plenty for lunch and supper, although we said we would be back in time. She smiled and hugged us.
"Hey, Tobias?" I say just as he was about to take another bite of his sandwich. "Why did Zeke's mom hug us and smile like that?"
"Uhm" he says and blushes. I find it cute when he does that. I've only noticed it a couple of times, but it's adorable. I take a bite from my on sandwich and wait patiently for him to explain. "Hana is like a second mom to me. She always wanted me to go out with a nice girl. The girls I usually went out with were picked by Zeke, because in his opinion we would have looked good together, whatever that means. So, Hana was really excited when I told her I would go out with you" he says and gives me a charming smile.
"So, I'm a nice girl?" I ask him trying to keep a straight face.
"Yes, very nice."
"Even after you saw me in my mountaineer mode?" I ask and he chuckles.
"Even after that. I think you are more than nice" he says and I look up. "I think you are smart, funny, witty, passionate, beautiful" he says and I feel myself blushing. I'm not used to being complimented, especially not by hot guys like he is. I still can wrap my head around why he asked me out. "Thanks for going out with me" he says after he finishes his sandwich.
"Thanks for asking."
After we finish lunch we just lie there side by side and watch the clouds. The wind is picking up a little, but it's not too bad. We decide to swim some more and talk about our pasts. I learn that he had two girlfriends before, but no relationship lasted longer than five or six weeks. I tell him that I never had a boyfriend and he doesn't believe me at first. I never really had the time for romance, I was otherwise preoccupied.
"We should go back" I say looking up to the sky.
"Why?" he asks and I look at him. His expression is serious, hurt even. "Did I bore you already?" he asks trying to mask the hurt I can see in his eyes.
"Tobias, I would love to spend a lot more time with you here. It's a beautiful place and the company is extraordinary, but I don't want to catch a cold" I say.
"It's still warm outside" he says looking confused.
"Right now it is, but not after it starts raining" I say and he raises an eyebrow. I point toward the sky and he still looks confused. "It'll rain in an hour or so" I say.
"How do you know?" he asks curiously.
"I've spend a lot of time outdoors and on mountains. I can tell when the weather changes. I've been watching the clouds for a while and it will definitely rain soon" I explain.
"I'll have to trust you then" he says getting up and putting his pants and tee shirt back on. I do the same and we gather all our things. "Ready" he says. I expect him to start walking but he keeps staring at me.
"What?" I ask.
"I had a really great time" he says a little sad.
"Why are you sad?" I blurt out.
"Because our date is over and we have to go back" he says. He has a little pout and I reach out to caress his cheek.
"We might be heading back, but our date is not over. There's still a lot I want to learn about Tobias Eaton" I say and he smiles.
"Really?"
"Really."
"Can I ask you something?"
"Under one condition" I say and he nods. "Stop asking if you can ask me something. Just ask" I say and we both laugh.
"Alright. I'll remember that. Tris, can I hold your hand?" he asks sweetly. My heart melts when he looks at me the way he does, like he is a lost puppy that needs a new home. I smile and reach out my hand to him. The moment our hands touch I feel that electricity again, the same I felt when he first touched me in the water. I feel myself blush and avert my gaze starting to walk, dragging him with me.
On our way back he tells me stories about when he was little, mostly school stuff or stupid things he and Zeke did and got caught more than one time. I tell him a few of my stories and by the time we are near the camp we know a lot more about the other. Just before we reach the first cabin he stops and pulls me backwards. I turn around to look at him confused.
"I imagined this a little differently, but since it's about to rain" and just on cue we hear a loud thunder "I was wondering if it would be okay to kiss you?" I look at him surprised, but nod nevertheless. He smiles sweetly and then cups my face in his large hands. He bends forward and his lips softly touch mine. The electricity is back, but it's intensified somehow and I feel a million little butterflies flying around my tummy. I reach up and wrap my arms around his neck pulling him closer. He uses his right arm to snake it around my waist keeping me pressed to his hard body. I don't know how long we've been standing here kissing, but we are pulled out of our own little world by the pouring rain that is soaking us. We break apart and smile at each other, Tobias resting his forehead on mine.
"That was… wow" I say. My first kiss. And it was with him, with Tobias.
"You can say that again" he says grinning.
"Wow" I repeat and we both laugh.
"We should go back inside."
"Yeah. See you soon?"
"You think you can get rid of me after such a kiss?" he asks with a cocky grin. I shake my head and kiss him again. We hurry inside into our respective cabins and change our clothes.